Indiana Pacers vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction, 5/1/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Indiana Pacers vs Oklahoma City Thunder

Date: Saturday, May 1, 2021

Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, OK

TV: Bally Sports Oklahoma

Odds/Point Spread: Indiana (-5.5)

The Indiana Pacers (29-33) go to Chesapeake Energy Arena on Saturday where they'll meet the Oklahoma City Thunder (21-42). Oklahoma City opens this game as 5.5-point underdogs. The O/U has been set at 225.

The Indiana Pacers faced the Brooklyn Nets and went home with a loss by a final score of 130-113 in their last contest. Indiana finished the contest with a 42.7% FG percentage (41 out of 96) and made 11 out of their 39 3-pointers. From the charity stripe, the Pacers converted 20 of their 21 tries for a rate of 95.2%. Regarding hauling in boards, they earned 38 with 7 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 23 dimes for the matchup while creating 13 turnovers and getting 8 steals. With respect to defense, Indiana allowed the other team to go 52.8% from the floor on 47 of 89 shooting. Brooklyn recorded 35 dimes and had 3 steals for the contest. On top of that, Brooklyn grabbed 50 rebounds (8 offensive, 42 defensive) and earned 6 blocks. Brooklyn walked away from this one shooting 85.7% from the charity stripe by burying 24 of their 28 tries. They buried 12 of 35 tries from distance.

Caris LeVert is one guy who played a role for the game. He racked up 36 points on 14 of 24 shooting. He played for 36:18 minutes and collected 4 boards. LeVert went 58.3% from the field and totaled 5 dimes. One more player that had an impact in this matchup for the Pacers was Edmond Sumner. He snagged 1 rebound in 22:34 min on the basketball court. He walked away from this one shooting 66.7% from the field in this game by going 6-of-9 (16 points). When the game finished, Sumner accounted for 1 assist.

Indiana heads into this contest with a win-loss mark of 29-33 on the campaign. They average 113.9 points per contest (11th in the league) while connecting on 46.9% from the field. The Pacers are shooting 35.7% from downtown (760 of 2,130) and 79.0% from the free throw line. As a team, Indiana is collecting 42.3 rebounds per contest and has 1,654 assists for the season, which has them ranked 7th in basketball in terms of passing the ball. They are turning it over 13.4 times per contest and as a group are committing 20.3 personal fouls every game. On the defensive end of the court, the Pacers are able to force 15.0 turnovers per game and they draw 18.5 personal fouls. They rank 23rd in basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 1,606 conceded for the year. The Pacers defense is giving up an opponent FG percentage of 46.9% (933 of 1,150) and they relinquish 46.9 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They relinquish 37.3% on 3-pointers and they rank 26th in the league in opponents PPG (114.8).

For their last game, the Oklahoma City Thunder took a loss by a score of 109-95 against the New Orleans Pelicans. The Thunder were able to snag 41 defensive boards and 12 offensive boards totaling 53 for the matchup. They also gave up possession 22 times, while getting 6 steals in the matchup. The Pelicans committed 22 fouls for this game which took the Thunder to the charity stripe for 20 attempts. They were able to convert 16 of them for a clip of 80.0%. With regard to shots from 3-point land, Oklahoma City knocked down 11 out of their 39 attempts (28.2%). When all was said and done, the Thunder ended up going 34 for 89 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 38.2%. The Thunder allowed the Pelicans to convert 45 of 101 tries from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.6% for the game. They shot 17.2% from three-point range by going 5 out of 29 and finished the game at 14 of 19 at the charity stripe (73.7%). In reference to how they rebounded, Oklahoma City permitted New Orleans to snag 56 in total (15 on the offensive side).

Luguentz Dort ended up being a factor for the Thunder in this contest. He converted 5 of 12 for this game giving him a field goal percentage of 41.7%, and accounted for 3 rebounds. Dort recorded 17 points in his 33:01 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist in this contest. One more player that ended being a contributor for Oklahoma City was Theo Maledon. He ended up walking away with 4 assists in 31:51 mins played, and he converted 5 out of 12 from the floor. Maledon wrapped this one up going 41.7% from the floor while earning 16 points and 1 rebound.

Oklahoma City has a win-loss mark of 21-42 on the season. On the offensive side of the ball, the Thunder are hitting on 44.4% from the field, which ranks 28th in basketball. Oklahoma City has 6,638 points so far this season (105.4 per game) and they pull in 45.5 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 22.2 times per game (27th in the league) and they lose possession via turnover 16.4 times per game. The Thunder are responsible for committing 18.3 fouls every game and they go 73.2% from the charity stripe. The Thunder on the defensive side of the court are 24th in basketball in PPG given up with 114.7. They give up 25.4 dimes and 47.1 boards every game, which ranks 19th and 27th in the NBA. The Oklahoma City defense concedes 35.7% on 3-point shots (829 of 2,323) and their opponents are connecting on 76.9% of their shots from the charity stripe. They are forcing 13.1 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 46.9% from the floor (18th in the league).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Indiana (-5.5)

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